As ever, The Concretes are timing their return to the airwave fray with aplomb, peddling their perfected brand of sunshine pop with the kind of pale dignity exclusive to Scandinavians - and they've been around far, far longer than The Magic Numbers.

Chosen One, the first cut from their forthcoming In Colour LP (which I just happen to know is an early contender for album of 2006), is vintage Concretes: the bubble-light chord progession, euphoric choral climax and interminably pretty instrumentation; Victoria Bergsman's sirenical singing voice charting familiar territory, pleading for the return of her lover.

The world is a better place for criminally underrated bands like The Concretes: in a bout of extra niceness, they've even printed the chords on the inside cover. Bless! May their children's children dine with Thor at the end of days. Or words to that effect.

share

end of year feature musicOMH's 50 Best Albums Of 2009 From the nearly 700 albums we reviewed this year, which did our writers love the most? Introduction 50-41 | 40-31 | 30-21 20-11 | 10-4 | 1-3